Russia has spent two years trying to move sanctioned LNG, and the biggest problem has been ships. That problem just got smaller, with four tankers that used to work for Oman now picking up fuel at a U.S.-blacklisted Russian project.
The Kosmos, Merkuriy, Orion and Luch all spent recent years serving Oman's export plant. This year they all changed hands.
The Kosmos went to a Hong Kong firm called Mighty Ocean Shipping in February. The Luch went to a Russian firm called Abakan LLC in April. The Orion and Merkuriy went to a firm called Celtic Maritime and Trading SA in February.
All four were sold as a block for about $110 million. None of the new owners are well known. All four ships are older than the typical LNG carrier still in use.
Both signals point to dark fleet ships. Russia has used the same playbook with oil tankers for years.
Tracking data shows the Kosmos pulled up next to a blacklisted floating tank called the Saam over the weekend. The Saam sits in waters near Murmansk in northern Russia.
When the Kosmos left, the ship rode lower in the water. Ship-trackers read that as a sign the tanker took on a cargo.
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The Saam holds fuel from Arctic LNG 2, a sanctioned Russian project on the Gydan Peninsula. Most of the year, only ships with ice-breaking hulls can reach it.
That bottleneck is why Russian gas has been stuck in the Arctic instead of reaching paying buyers. Adding these four tankers could boost the project's export capacity by roughly 40%.
With the Strait of Hormuz mostly closed, Asia is short on LNG and willing to take fuel from almost anywhere. Russia is happy to oblige, offering its sanctioned cargoes at a discount.
At least 20 tankers are now moving fuel from sanctioned Russian projects. One was attacked back in March and is out of service.
The Merkuriy already picked up a cargo from the Saam earlier this month and is now in the Atlantic, likely heading to Asia. The Orion is heading to the project, and the Luch is also nearby.
Reports earlier this year said Russia was offering its sanctioned LNG to Asian buyers at a steep cut to market prices. That has helped move cargoes that would otherwise sit unsold.
The Saam is the gateway between Arctic LNG 2 and global markets. Without ice-class ships, the gas can't reach buyers.
Sanctions enforcement gets harder when ownership keeps flipping through anonymous shell companies in different countries. That's exactly what's happening here.
For now, the cargoes are moving and the buyers are paying.
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